Its Ramadan...

Hello Friends and Family,
First of all I would like to address the situation of the current bombings. The day before Ramadan there were bombings in the Southeast part of the country. They were directed at Bangladeshi government and not at foreigners or Americans. No Americans were hurt and all Peace Corps volunteers are safe and sound. For those of you who worry I would like to point out two things. One if you are American you are living in a paranoid society and this is re-enforced by your media. Also the American government is not that organized and neither are terrorists. Peace Corps is more concerned about Avian Bird Flu in Bangladesh than terrorists so cool your jets.

So yes it is Ramadan. Most of the population is hungry and thirsty and really grumpy. Last night was our Peace Corps training talent show. We opened with our "Burka Burlesque". It was a smashing success and the other trainees loved it. There were 5 of us swarthed in Burkas. We did our sexy number which was not too sexy in a burka but was comical to say the least. Not sure how P.C. it was to do it on the first day of Ramadan but hey it was funny. I also did a bellydance piece and everyone loved it. Some of the volunteers did skits, comedy routienes, played instruments, sang and did karate. Over all we have a talented bunch and it is amazing how creative you can be without a television around.

Speaking of Ramadan now there is more yelling from microphones atop mosques than there was before. "Allah Ouakba!!! Hachke Bhat Khaben!! Hachke Bhat Khaben!! Protom namas eck ghonta!!" (which is Bangla for "God is great. Eat your rice now! Eat your rice now! One hour until the first prayer") This happens at 3am of course and since there is a mosque two houses down from me I too wake up at 3am. Blehhhhhhhh......... There are some trainees who are participating in the Ramadan fast and all that. I however, am not and here is why. While I think that it is important to integrate into a culture whose populace you intend to serve I would never assimilate. For safety and security reasons I have adopted the Islamic dress of this country and i am learning the language and customs. However, I will never willingly participate in a religion that is patriarchal and views women as sinful and dirty. Will i be respectful? Yes but I will not participate in religious services or activities. Period.

Also we had a football match Americans versus Bangladeshies. And for the Americans reading this in your country you call "football" soccer. But in the rest of the world it is football. Anyway the game was fun but the Bangladeshis beat us by 1 point.

STUFF TO ALWAYS SEND ME:
I have heard a rumor that you all are afraid to send me stuff because of the Bangladeshi post. Well frankly I want packages and if some stuff gets stolen its better than no package at all. So get busy. Here is a list of stuff I can always use.
nice spiral notebooks, journals, nice paper for letters
400 speed indoor/outdoor 35mm film
snacks (WHEAT FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!)
cans of tuna
cans of tomato sause, paste
parmasian cheese
ziplock baggies
mayonaise
rice pasta
AA batteries
rice pasta
school supplies (nice chalk, colored chalk, posters, maps, magazines! Anything!!)
Music (please burn me Cds!!!!! I am really wanting to hear some Marilyn MANSON)
Nice pens and pencils
BOOKS (sci-fi, fantasy, horror, fiction, biographies...anything!!!)
insect repellent WITH DEET (lets not screw around natural food buying readers Malaria and Dengue Fever are real threats to me here and DEET keeps the Mosquitos off. I would rather have exposure to deet than get one of these diseases)
****Remember smaller packages get here faster*****

HOST FAMILY UPDATE:
So it has been interesting in the host fam. Beetee's story has de-escalated from horrible abuse to being in a crappy marraige. How many of you back home have been in crappy marraiges raise your hand? Anyway, its just hard because she loves me and i am her only friend and she does not know how to deal with her situation. People here are immature by American standards and if she could play with Barbies she probably would. I mean she was married at 14 for Christ sake. My host mother is still a pain in the ass. She dose not like that i do as I please and often trys to boss me around. By now I just don't eat all that is on my plate or if she serves me too much rice I scoop back into the pot what I dont eat. SHe may be bossy as hell but I am stubborn as hell. WHat she does when I frustrate her is emotionally beat up Beetee. Beetee is an easy target because she is powerless which is why she has learned how to be very manipulative. I have told her I do not like this kind of behavior and I will not play games. So I think we have come to a better understanding these last few days.

I also attended an NGO (non-government organization) fair. I am really interested in 2 types of secondary projects. First of all I am interested in sex. Yep that is right folks, sex in an oppressed Islamic society is riddled with problems. HIV is on the rise and there is a large and abused male and female prostitute caste as well as hijras who also sell sex. (Hijras are transgenders who provide entertainment as well as sex work). I am also interested in teaching teachers how to teach better here. That is sustainible work and these are some of the ideas that I am looking at. It wont be for a while until i get to these though.

ANyway, I am still really excited to get to site and get settled in. I want to get out of here and start my work.

I miss you all very much. Take care and thanks for the letters!!

Kisses
Maya